(Photo: Jack Simon/WCSN)
TEMPE – It had to be Vivian Ovrootsky.
On Senior Day, it was only fitting that the lone graduate student, undefeated through 16 spring contests and the Energizer Bunny of No. 14 ASU women’s tennis (17-4, 9-2 Big 12), clinched the sweep 4-0 over No. 65 Colorado (10-11, 2-9 Big 12).
A lengthy celebration took place on court one afterwards with Ovrootsky receiving a wood plaque, flowers and pictures with every player and coach as a token of appreciation for her 28-6 record during her only season in Tempe.
“This has been, in my four and a half years in college, my favorite season playing wise,” Ovrootsky said. “It’s been so fun to be with these girls, with an amazing coaching staff, who I’ve known most of them since I was really young. So it was great to get to experience that final year of playing with people that really care about you and what you want to achieve.”
It was the San Jose native’s moment from the start, setting the tone for the doubles on court one alongside her partner, sophomore Lily Taylor. An aggressive poaching strategy paid dividends quickly and set the pair up to serve for the set at 5-3.
Taylor sealed the set 6-3 with consecutive winners, alternating between delicate volleys and thunderous overheads that bisected her opponents. It was smooth sailing for ASU’s top duo, but the other two courts were pushed to tiebreaks.
Despite serving for the set at 6-5 on court two, junior Emilija Tverijonaite and sophomore Aiya Nupbay were broken back immediately. Falling behind 4-1 in the tiebreaker, the Sun Devils were unable to climb out of that hole, and errors by both players, followed by a Colorado return winner, saw the Buffaloes tie the doubles point at one apiece.
Simultaneously, freshmen Sarang Lim and Zlata Bartanusz were staging an improbable comeback one court over. From being down 1-5, ASU’s third doubles rebounded mentally and physically to force an incredibly controversial final seven-point showdown.
Multiple line and net calls were argued by both sides with coaches and spectating players stepping in to plead their case to the umpire. At 2-3 in the tiebreak, an alleged net touch on Lim was uncalled, knotting the breaker at three-all, and Bartanusz called a Colorado backhand long on match point, much to the dismay of their opponents.
“I couldn’t believe all the drama that was happening on court three,” head coach Jamea Jackson said. “I ended up walking over there at one point because it seemed like they were questioning every single call, and when that is occurring, sometimes people are trying to work the umpire over a little bit and maybe steal a call when it matters. But to our young ones credit, they really did keep their head in that difficult time with all these distractions coming up against them.”
The 7-6(5) win allowed ASU to snatch the doubles point and after falling behind 1-0 on Friday against No. 34 Texas Tech, the Sun Devils were thrilled to be playing with a lead.
On court one, Tverijonaite, No. 26, continued her hot streak with her eighth straight win. Against a taller opponent with a huge backhand, Colorado’s Aya El Sayed, Tverijonaite outlasted her opponent on numerous occasions, goading her into easy errors.
El Sayed hit her fair share of winners but dipped for long stretches where Tverijonaite took complete control. A pair of early breaks saw Tverijonaite race out to a 5-3 start before facing a break point while serving for the set. Covering every square inch of the court, the Lithuanian put every ball back in play before ripping a running crosscourt forehand winner to the cheers of the Sun Devil faithful.
A backhand error from El Sayed gave Tverijonaite the first set in under a half-hour but Colorado hit back to begin the second. El Sayed broke and saved a break point to take a 3-0 lead, with furious groundstrokes that pushed Tverijonaite back and limited her time.
A cool head prevailed for Tverijonaite, who won six of the next seven games, and put ASU on the board 6-1, 6-4 with a backhand error from El Sayed. The junior now moves into fourth-place for the most singles wins in a year with 30, and has a real shot at breaking the record this season with two games, the Big 12 Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, remaining.
On court six, Lim carried over her doubles momentum to a straight-sets victory. Facing another tall, heavy-hitting opponent, Lim played within herself instead of overhitting, resulting in a straightforward 6-2, 6-3 win.
With ASU up 3-0, all eyes turned to Ovrootsky on court two. After two unfinished contests halted her seven-match winning streak, the graduate was keen to get back to winning ways.
Ovrootsky was commanding from the back of the court, finding angles on both wings and finishing points with urgency. Breaks were common in the first set but Ovrootsky pulled through 6-2 on a forehand error from her opponent.
A grittier second set ensued, with Ovrootsky digging deep to avoid going down a break at 3-3. In moments of irritation, she credited assistant coach Diego Nava for helping her stay the course.
“That’s his job helping me there,” Ovrootsky said. “I was getting a little frustrated but I knew if I was gonna fall into that frustration trap, it wasn’t gonna end well … Diego just kept reassuring me, ‘You can do it. Be aggressive, play your game’ and I trust him. I took his words to heart, and (it) definitely paid off to break her at 4-3.”
With the break in her pocket, Ovrootsky eased up on the nerves. A beautiful drop volley took her to 30-30 and an ace down the T sent it to match point, clinched by a Colorado slice into the net that secured ASU’s seventh consecutive victory.
Perhaps it was meant to be for Ovrootsky, who in her sole season as a Sun Devil, has had a monumental impact on both ASU’s record and its players. From her prior relationship with Jackson, who coached her as a 13-year-old on the junior circuit, to her mentoring of Lim, Ovrootsky’s influence has been a huge reason for the Sun Devil’s growth in Jackson’s second year.
“It was a great day full of emotions,” Ovrootsky said. “They’re not showing right now but they will later.”
